Dumbledore was a busy man. Running Hogwarts was not his only duty, although having hundreds of children to look after was certainly a responsibility all in itself. The Ministry demanded daily that he give advice on matters concerning the wizarding world. So when his deputy headmistress asked him to go check on one of his past charges he was reluctant to do so. Besides, he was sure the child was fine in the care of his mother’s relatives. There were many other children that needed his attention at the moment. However, Minerva was persistent. A trait that had amused him when she was a headstrong Gryffindor and one that he admired in the headstrong teacher.

So, after a week of listening to the woman fret over the boy he finally agreed to go check on the boy. Of course he dressed in muggle clothing, a bright orange jumper, and brushed his long white hair neatly before leaving for Privet Drive. Upon arrival, he was rather amused and surprised to find that the street had changed very little since the last time he was here four years ago. Pleasantly, he rapped on the door, hoping to put his former student at ease by the end of this visit. There was a scuffling noise inside and then the door opened slightly to reveal a huge pair of green orbs staring up at him.”

“Hello?” He asked softly, looking shyly at the funny looking man standing on his porch.

“Hello, Harry. Are your aunt and uncle home?”

“No. They left to take Dudley to the toy store.” Harry was bewildered to how this man could possibly know his name.

“Ah, a babysitter then perhaps?”

“No, I’m not worth the money.” He told the old man in a matter-of-fact voice, repeating what his Uncle Vernon had said.

Dumbledore frowned down at the boy, his twinkle dimming ever so slightly. He didn’t understand how those words could be spoken so calmly. “May I come in, child?”

“Uncle Vernon said that I’m not allowed to let in strangers.” The five-year-old told him simply, although he did not close the door.

“And how wise of him.” Dumbledore said thoughtfully. “Well, perhaps I could simply come and stand in the foyer?”

Harry seemed to think it over before nodding and opening the door to admit his future headmaster. Walking over to the kitchen door he pointed to the threshold and informed him ‘not to cross that line’. Dumbledore inclined his head in agreement and leaned against the wall, observing the young boy. His hair was a greasy mess and there was dirt on his face, he was unnaturally pale as though he spent little time in the sunlight. What concerned him the most was that he could see the boy’s bones quite clearly and he appeared the be severely underweight.

Frowning he asked, “Harry, are you hungry?”

Harry’s eyes grew wide and he shook his head violently, however this was betrayed by a rumbling in his stomach. The boy looked down and placed his tiny hands on his stomach. Stubbornly he said, “I’m not.”

“It sounds like you are, dear boy. Come here, let’s get you something to eat.” He took out his wand and conjured up a plate of food with a Stomach Expanding Solution on it, courtesy of his new Potions Master. Harry’s eyes grew huge and he backed away from the old wizard.

“Bad.” He said softly, looking extremely anxious. “Magic bad.”

“No, it’s not bad, look.” He took a small bite of the food and gestured for the boy to come over. Harry did so hesitantly, and sat down in front of Dumbledore in the foyer. Tentatively he picked up the fork and began to eat, eventually he lost his self-consciousness and began to wolf down the food so fast that Dumbledore had to encourage him to take his time. When it was gone the boy looked down at the empty plate looking extremely betrayed. Quietly, Dumbledore made the plate refill itself and Harry’s eyes lit up causing the headmaster to chuckle fondly. Gently, he placed a hand on the boys shoulder and to his surprise the little boy flinched and whimpered. Frowning, feeling a sense of foreboding he pulled aside the thin fabric of his ratty tee-shirt to reveal the boy’s skin underneath. A large purple bruise had formed there. Further down his back were marks that looked like they had come from a belt.

A rare scowl passed the man’s face at the idea of someone hurting a helpless child. “Harry, how did you get these bruises?”

He looked away and then let out a tiny sob and buried his face in Dumbledore’s thick, soft beard. “Not supposed to tell!” He wailed forlornly.

Sadly he said, “I won’t tell anyone, child.”

“I got in the way and Uncle Vernon got mad.” Said the little boy, voice muffled by the beard.

New determination coursing through him he stood up, bringing the little boy with him. “Harry, I’m going to take you away from here.”

“Why?” Asked the little boy, staring up at him.

“Because your relatives aren’t taking care of you the way they should be.”

Harry looked confuse, “But they let me stay here. They told me that I’m lucky they kept me, they’re good people.”

It pained Dumbledore to listen to the little boy and he promised himself that he would apologize to Minerva for not listening to her sooner, “No, they’re not, Harry. You deserve better, I’ll take you somewhere where you can get better.”

With this he began to survey his options, there were very few open to him. Dumbledore was too public a figure to take in the little boy, Remus was not financially sound as he turned down repeated teaching offers at Hogwarts, and all the Potters were deceased. Finally, a thought came to him and he knew exactly where he would be taking the boy. This could very possibly be the best thing that ever happened to either of them.

Severus Snape was not happy as he stumbled inside of Spinners End. With a sigh, he slouched down on the lump couch and buried his face in his hands. What did I get myself into, he wondered as he reached for a bottle of anti-Cruciatus potion. It tasted foul but he longed for relief from the Unforgivable that had been cast on him tonight by a frustrated deatheater who wanted to take action. Although the Dark Lord was gone, his followers remained strong and determined and they were tired of waiting to take action.

He had no friends anywhere in the Wizarding World save for Dumbledore. The Order was reluctant to associate itself with a former deatheaters. On the other hand, his fellow deatheaters were beginning to notice his lack of conviction for their beliefs. Persecution was coming from all sides and it was already wearing him down only two years after he’d turned to Dumbledore. Why am I doing this, he asked himself plaintively, it’s not like I can possible atone for any of the sins I committed as a deatheater.

There was a sudden knock of his door and he groaned, dragging himself upwards. If that’s Lucius, so help me, he thought angrily. The blonde had been the cause of the curse that evening, feeding Severus’ blood into the figurative shark tank. Severus found that in the past few years he had begun to harbor a great hatred for his former ally. He peered out into the dusk and was surprised to see his mentor standing on his doorstep holding what looked like a filthy child dressed in rags.

He quickly unlocked the door and gave Dumbledore a very weak, very forced smile and gestured for him to come in. Suddenly he felt embarrassed by the small, cramped house that he lived in. The one he’d inherited from his father and the one he hated so much. Often, he went for long walks just so it wouldn’t feel so much like a prison in this house. Being a deatheater before had offered him wealth, but now the money seemed dirty and he had been reduced to staying here. Of course, the headmaster had offered more suitable lodgings but Severus had been far too proud to accept them. After all, he already owed the man so much. However, he knew that it was just his vanity speaking and that Dumbledore was far too noble to judge a man of his wealth. Severus winced when he compared Dumbledore’s wise outlook to his shallow one that he had previously held.

“Severus my boy, how are you?”

“Fine,” he lied, trying to still his shaky hands. The headmaster’s shrewd stare seemed to know better.

“I’m afraid I need to ask you a favor.”

“Anything,” he instantly replied, still eager to prove himself after these two long years.

Dumbledore sighed at the man’s answer. They would have to discuss Severus’ debt of gratitude at a later time. “I have a young charge I need you to look after.”

A look of understanding crossed the Potion Master’s face as he looked down at the shabbily dressed boy who was in Dumbledore’s arms. His automatic response was ‘Hel no, I’m not looking after that little brat’. However, he was reminded of his predicament and what came out of his mouth was slightly different.

“Are you sure, Professor Dumbledore? I’m not...good with children.” That was an understatement. Even the first and second year students at Hogwarts made him uneasy.

With a chuckle the man responded, “Not a good thing to tell the man the recently gave you a teaching position at his school.”

Severus simply frowned down at the tiny boy who was shyly but curiously looking up at him with big green eyes from his place in Dumbledore’s arms. “Professor–.”

“Severus, please, call me Albus.”

“Fine, Albus, I don’t think I can do that.”

“Ah, you underestimate yourself child.” Dumbledore pushed the boy into his arms. Awkwardly he held him, but he began to slip so Severus had to shift him and drag him back upwards. The little boy whimpered, startling Snape into releasing him. Harry fell to the floor on his butt and blinked up at his future teacher. Dumbledore looked amused and Severus simply glared at him. And then he spotted the scar on his forehead.

“Albus...”

“Yes,” he said pleasantly, “I believe you have heard of Harry Potter.”

“”Now wait just one minute. If you think that I’m going to watch after James Potter’s...spawn...”

“I would think you’d want to help Severus, considering your history.” Meaningfully, Dumbledore looked at him over his half-moon spectacles.

For a moment Severus frowned at him but then his eyes lit up with understanding and he glanced down at the little boy who was now fingering the hem of Severus’ black robe. “I had to remove him from the Muggle’s care.”

“Fine,” he snapped bitterly, trying not to feel any sympathy for the little boy, “How long does he have to stay here?”

Dumbledore smiled slightly, a mischievous glint in his eyes, “Well, we’ll just have to see, now won’t we?”

Manipulative old man, thought Severus as the headmaster bid him a farewell and closed the door gently behind him. When he heard the door shut, the little boy’s head snapped around and he whimpered before letting out a horrid wail complete with fat tears falling down his face. Severus stared at Harry in horror. What am I supposed to do now, he asked himself desperately. Since there seemed to be nothing particularly wrong with the child, he walked into the bedroom to rest, figuring that eventually Harry would tire himself out. However, the frightened child continued to scream, giving his guardian no peace. Finally, in frustration he stormed back into the living room where the child paid him no heed. Severus wasn’t stupid, he knew that Harry wanted comfort. However, never having been granted much of that as a child he was unsure how to provide it to another.

Well, there was one thing that his mother, Eileen Prince, had done to comfort him which was singing to him. He hesitated, looking for any other possible option to make him be quiet. Looking down at the small body with a excellent set of lungs, he decided there was no other option. Desperate times call for desperate measures after all. Carefully he bent down and lifted the boy into his arms. For a moment Harry struggled but then resigned himself to leaning against his shoulder crying. Rustily, he began to sing, thankful that no one, especially the headmaster could see this.

Harry quieted and stared up at him. Hesitantly, he reached his hands up and placed them around Snape’s neck and held on tightly. When the child did this Severus felt something warm and frightening rise within him. Quickly, he tried to fight off this feeling but it only grew stronger and more pronounced. Soon he realized that Harry had silenced completely and was asleep against his chest. Relieved, he attempted to place the child on the couch but this only made Harry whimper and clutch his robes. Terrified of waking him and going through another tantrum he carefully laid down on the floor and soon fell asleep out of exhaustion.

XxXxXxX

“I told you Albus! Did I not say I didn’t trust these Muggles to take care of him?” Minerva ranted, storming down Privet Drive in all her robe-clad glory. Dumbledore sighed heavily, his deputy headmistress was not at all happy with him after he filled her in about what he’d found.

“Minerva, please hold your temper.”

“Are you kidding me! Albus, these people deserve to be told off, in fact they deserve so much more. These people are no better then deatheaters with their prejudices against magic. But, can we lock them up in Azkaban? No!” Dumbledore hoped that it was dark enough that no one would see the angry witch storming down the street.

“Surely you’re aware that not all Muggles are like that.” McGonagall scoffed and all but blew down their front door. Dumbledore had lived long enough to learn to control his temper, however he was angry about the treatment of his charge and simply did not have the will to calm his former student.

Mrs. Dursley let out a melodramatic scream when the witch and wizard entered her kitchen, a little chubby boy waddled behind his mother’s legs (though they did not hide him), and Mr. Dursley jumped to his feet and began turning purple in the face. His mouth opened and closed several times, bits of spittle escaping his mouth.

McGonagall looked sternly down at the Muggles as if she was looking at a student who had really disappointed her. The look on her face now was not one that even Sirius Black had managed to drag out of her. “We need to speak to you about Harry Potter.”

Petunia paled slightly and ushered her son out of the room and Vernon went bug-eyed. As Petunia stepped out, Minerva followed her into the living room. Dumbledore was hesitant to leave her alone with the woman but decided it was best to allow her to handle it in her own way. Calmly he turned to the large man who was staring with rage in his eyes.

“I must say that I am terribly disappointed about what I found here.”

“Now, you look here. How I run my family is none of your business.”

Dumbledore met his eyes angrily, “It is my business when you endanger one of my charges. You took out a prejudice on a little boy who’s only sin is having parents who died young.”

“I want you out of my house...” but the man faltered as energy crackled around the older man. Dumbledore did not draw his wand, but that didn’t make him any less intimidating.

His voice got soft and dangerous, “I’m a firm believer that we all eventually get what we deserve in this life, and I believe you have gotten just that. You life in a small, safe box, never bothering to look over the edges at the world around you. Ask yourself where your fear of magic comes from. The fact that it may effect your little box or the fact that it won’t? Know, that if you damaged that boy in any way you will suffer, as will many other people. Not at my hands, but mark my words you will.”

Finally his face lightened and he took a deep breath before turning to gather Minerva and leave, hopefully never to return to Number Four Privet Drive. However, before they left he caught sight of a ginger horse standing in the middle of the living room.

“Minerva!” He chortled as they walked across the threshold, “Aren’t you going to change her back?”

“No,” she said simply. At his stern look she sighed, “honestly Albus, it is a timed transfiguration spell. She’ll turn back.”

With that she fixed her green hat and gave him a rare smile, “I best get my lesson plans ready for the fall.”

He laughed; Severus and Minerva, his two favorite overachievers both when they were students and now that they were teachers.

XxXxXxX

Harry was half-awake the next morning, laying on a hard floor. However, he was warm and thankful for that. Usually his cupboard was drafty and the thin blankets simply didn’t keep him warm. He’d had the strangest dream about a man with an orange jumper! Without opening his eyes he cuddled into the source of the warmth and let out a tiny yawn.

Severus had been awake for some time now on the uncomfortable floor, afraid to move for fear of waking the boy. He had no clue why he had agreed to this, he knew absolutely nothing about kids. To his horror the little form...cuddled (there was really no other word for it) against him. Cautiously he opened his eyes and looked down at the little form which was now staring back at him with wide, sleep-filled eyes.

“Morning.” He mumbled.

Severus simply said the first thing that came to mind, “You’re filthy.”

Harry frowned up at him in a way that would have been adorable to anyone besides Severus Snape. Then he wiped his hand across his face to try to make it clean, however this simply smeared the dirt.

“Hose?” Asked Harry, trembling and looking (to Snape’s horror) like he was going to cry again.

“What?” He asked in confusion.

“Use garden hose to get clean?” He asked with a tone of resignation, disentangling himself from Snape.

“No, child. You’ll use the bathtub.” Had those Muggles really cleaned him in the yard with a hose like a common house pet?

“Not ‘llowed.” He said, stretching out his tiny limbs.

“Here you are.” Said Severus, feeling anger rise in him. Harry smiled and leaned against him in a small hug. Stiffly, Snape rubbed his back in what he hoped was a soothing gesture. Wait, was he supposed to help the kid with his bath? Severus let out a sigh and transfigured the child’s clothes into swim trunks, he wasn’t sure how that whole deal was supposed to work.

Sometime during the bath the little boy began to get a little confidence and play hesitantly in the water. At one point he splashed Severus and to his surprise the man found a smile on his face as he gently splashed him back causing the boy to laugh and clap his hands together. Once they were done he conjured some tiny robes for the little boy and decided they would have to go shopping later . Sitting the boy on the couch, he walked into the kitchen to start breakfast, not feeling quite as terrified by his new job.

With a flick of his wand, Severus began breakfast, stepping over to his locked potion’s cabinet he opened it and shifted through it’s contents to find some bruise salve for the small child. He would have to make a nutrient potion from scratch. With a sigh, he gathered the ingredients he would need and laid them out at his small workstation in the corner of the living room.

"Cooking?" Asked a tiny voice shyly from down on the floor.

"No, I’m making a potion." He explained, at the boy’s confused look he explained, "It’s a form of magic."

Suddenly Harry seemed frightened and backed away from Severus and the workstation, "Bad magic."

Frowning slightly he contemplated the words, but he was pretty sure he understood. His father had never been fond of magic either and he’d often reacted violently when his mother used it or Severus had performed accidental magic. "Is that what your relatives told you?"

Harry nodded in the affirmative and Severus sighed. Quickly, he walked up the stairs into the small attic and opened up an old, moldy box. Inside he found an old toy of his, a bear his mother had given him. Casting a cleaning spell and enchantment spell on it, he carried it back downstairs for Harry. Hopefully this would make the boy see that magic could be good. He plopped it on the floor in front of Harry. It shook it’s little, fuzzy head and glared up at Severus, then it got to it’s feet and waddled over to the little boy. Harry’s eyes grew wide and he gently picked it up, the thing jumped to Harry and wrapped it’s stubby arms around him and snuggled against him. With an open mouth, Harry glanced up at Severus and gave him a brilliant smile.

"Glad you like it," mumbled Severus, adding two more ingredients and stirring it counter-clockwise. Then he left his stool to go get their breakfast.

Harry stared down at the bear in his arms in surprise. No one had ever given him a present before. Suddenly, he felt guilty. The man probably wouldn’t have given it to him if he knew what an unlovable freak he was. Maybe he could help make it up to the man! On the table the man appeared to be cooking what looked like soup. He knew how to cook, and it always made his Aunt Petunia happy when he did a good job at cooking things.

Carefully, he climbed up onto the stool and peered into the giant pot. Yuck! Clearly the man didn’t know much about cooking. The liquid was a sickly looking green color and he felt sorry for whoever had to eat it. So Harry decided he could help by fixing the soup. He reached out on the table and grabbed a pretty looking plant and tossed it into the pot. It bubbled and turned a bright blue. Harry smiled, there, it was all fixed. Suddenly it began to bubble violently and Harry quickly scuttled down the stool and sheltered himself behind the couch. There was a wet splashing noise and the potion exploded with a pop, splattering all over the living room.

Severus placed two plates full of food on the plate and went back to the living room to fetch Harry. When he entered the room all he could do was stand there and stare, open-mouthed, at his destroyed potion and living room. Finally he came to his senses and snapped loudly, "Potter!"

There was a tiny whimper behind the couch and Severus walked over to the couch and peered behind it where the boy was cowering in apparent terror. Quietly, he kneeled next to him and lifted the little boy’s chin to meet his eyes. In what he hoped was a calm voice he said softly, "What happened?"

"I’m sorry!" Cried the buy, curling himself into a small ball, as far away from Severus as possible.

Awkwardly, he patted the boy’s arm and said quietly, "It’s alright. Just tell me what happened."

"I was trying to help, he cried, apparently not listening to the comforting words of his new guardian. The little boy pulled away from his hand and pushed his back up against the couch.

"I’m not angry, Harry." He said softly, unsure of himself. In truth, he was angry about the ruined potion and the wasted potion ingredients. On the other hand, he was worried about Harry’s reaction and fear of him, if this was going to work like Dumbledore wanted it to the boy would have to trust him.

Harry heard the man’s words and as much as he wanted to believe them, he didn’t. There had been times his aunt and uncle had acted under the guise of kindness and those had been the times when he’d received the worst of his punishments. He wished the man would just get it over with and punish him, it was so much better then him pretending that he wasn’t going to punish him. Then he felt a gentle arm pull him into a warm lap and felt a gentle hand brushing through his hair. Slowly, he felt himself begin to calm down and lean into the warm embrace.

"Merlin, Potter. Didn’t anyone ever brush this mop before?" Severus asked, fingering the extremely messy hair. Gently, he stood the boy up and released him. "Are you hungry?"

Shyly, Harry nodded up at him and Severus led him into the kitchen and set him up at a place at the table. Then he returned to the living room and sighed, quickly he cast a cleaning spell, which was difficult to do on an entire room. He would have to pick up a nutrient potion when they went to get the boy some robes Harry was staring longingly at the plate of food in front of him but he had yet to touch it.

"Eat." He commanded and the child hesitantly obeyed, looking at Severus every few bites to make sure that he wasn’t looking at him disapprovingly.

"Not mad?" He asked softly, staring down intently at his plate.

He let out a breath, "No, Harry. I’m not mad at you."

Now, Severus had worked for the darkest wizard of all time as a faithful servant. He had killed another human being before. He’d worked for two years as a teacher and the Head of Slytherin dealing with all kinds of problems that McGonagall never had to face down. Because of all of this, he was rather hard to shock. However, nothing could have prepared him for what Harry said next.

"Can I call you dad?"

"What?"He sputtered, "Why?"

"Well, I never had a family, a real family and I’d really like to have one and you’ve been so nice to me that I thought...you know...that we could be a family." It all came out in one breath and then the little boy was left staring expectantly at him.

Severus did not know what he could even begin to say so when he heard a knock on the door, he leapt at the opportunity to leave the room. He peered through the peep hole and winced when he saw a flash of blonde hair. Quickly and silently, he made his way back to the kitchen and took his wand out, "Harry, I need to cast a spell on you and I need you to do exactly what I say? Okay, can you do that?"

Harry nodded quickly and Severus cast a glamour on the boy’s scar to keep his identity hidden. "Now look, your name is Christopher Vitale and you are my nephew, got that?"

As soon as the boy nodded again and repeated the words back to him, Severus went back to invite his old friend into the old house. He would have to be extremely careful when dealing with Lucius. There was a time when he would have been happy to have the man in his home. During school he, Narcissa, and Lily Evans had been his only allies. Lucius was clever enough to avoid the wrath of the marauders, and having close ties to Black’s family, he had been the only one able to control the boy. In fact, most of his worst memories relating to the Marauders happened after Lucius had graduated. Unfortunately, Lucius had changed once he joined the deatheaters. He’d become cruel for no reason and had been the one to influence a young, trusting Severus into joining the deatheaters.

Calmly, he opened the door, "Hello, Lucius."

"Severus," replied the man cooly. "May I come in?"

It was all very formal between them now, in order to keep it civil, "Of course."

They entered the small living room and the blonde gave a customary Malfoy sneer. Harry was looking curiously around the door, not coming further into the room. Lucius noticed and asked, "Who’s that?"

Severus took a deep breath and spun his lie, "He’s my nephew, Christopher. His parents died recently and he will be staying with me for a little while."

With a snort Lucius flopped down on the couch and said sarcastically, "Where’s he going to sleep, the roof?"

Although he scowled, Snape had been wondering this very thing. "Well, he can sleep on the couch." Harry had came over and wrapped himself around Severus’ legs.

Lucius raised one eyebrow in a good-humored manner and said incredulously, "No, he can’t!" He gave a suspicious look at the small, undernourished boy hiding behind Severus, "Is he from your mother or father’s side?"

He knew exactly what the other man meant, "He’s a wizard."

This brought a slight smile to Lucius’ face and he got to his feet, "I’ve been adding to the mansion for years, I can get you another room in here."

How unlike him, thought Severus as his friend did the complicated spell. A new door appeared in the hallway and Lucius gave an overly grand gesture to show him the room. It was decorated in greens and silvers, which was certainly like Lucius even at this age, and was already furnished with the bare essentials.

thought Severus as his friend did the complicated spell. A new door appeared in the hallway and Lucius gave an overly grand gesture to show him the room. It was decorated in greens and silvers, which was certainly like Lucius even at this age, and was already furnished with the bare essentials."Thank you, Lucius."

"I’m guessing he didn’t have any other relatives?" Asked Lucius, eyeing Harry.

"What makes you say that?" Severus snapped.

"Well, they put you in charge of him, didn’t they."

With a scowl he responded, "Did you come here for something?"

"Yes, I just wanted to share the good news. You are looking at the new senator for the Minister of Magic."

"You’re kidding me. With your history?"

"Ah, but you forget. There was nothing I could do about that. I was, after all, under the Imperius Curse." Lucius said with a smirk and a wink.

As Severus showed Malfoy out he couldn’t help but worry about whether or not the Wizarding World would be able to rebuild itself with people like him in charge.

"Who was that?" Asked Harry, thankfully forgetting about his earlier question before they were interrupted by Lucius.

"A bad wizard. There are some wizards in this world, Harry that want only to elevate their power, even if it means hurting other people to do so." The boy stared blankly up at him and Severus sighed, he was trying to discuss wizarding values with a five-year-old boy, "Eat your eggs, Harry."

"Okay." The boy said cheerfully, digging into the food laid out in front of him at a pace that both worried and impressed Severus.

"We need to go to Madam Malkins’ Robes, as well as a Muggle clothing store. We need to stop and get your potion and perhaps some things for your room." Snape listed off the things they needed to do. He was a firm believer in lists, something that both Lucius and Lily had teased him endlessly about during his Hogwarts days, even Dumbledore had made the occasional comment about his many lists he kept in his drawers in his dungeon office. Harry nodded, even though he clearly did not know of the places Severus was speaking of.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door and Severus glanced at it, frowning curiously. Who could that be now? He wasn’t exactly a social butterfly these days, not that he ever had been. Putting his fork back down on his plate, he stood up and walked to the front door. As was his habit, being a spy, he checked the identity of the visitor. When he did, he seriously considered hiding inside and pretending not to be home. However, he would like to think his maturity extended beyond that and he stiffly opened the door.

"Hello Remus."

"Severus!" Exclaimed the man in his ever polite voice, carefully looking at Severus. "How are you?"

"Peachy," he drawled sarcastically. That damn smile never faltered, in fact he could swear it grew a little wider. "Did you want something Lupin?"

"Well..." He hesitated and rubbed coarse hands against his trousers. "Dumbledore told me Harry was here and I never got to see him when he was with the Dursleys, reckoned they didn’t want a werewolf and wizard in their house–."

"But you assumed I would be keen on the idea, Wolf." He hissed, slightly regretting the words as a look of hurt crossed the man’s face. Quickly, he pushed that feeling away. Remus was a Marauder, he deserved whatever he got.

Remus held his hands up in a placating gesture and said in his soft spoken way, "Come on, Severus."

He sighed and briefly met the amber eyes of the werewolf and finally said, "Yes, fine. Come in."

To his surprise Remus reached out and touched his shoulder as he stepped into the small house, "This was really nice of you Severus. Taking Harry in after what happened with his relatives," his eyes flashed and Severus felt a shudder run through him, "How anyone could hurt a child is beyond me." To be honest, Remus seemed a lot more confident about Severus’ ability to take care of this boy then he was. "If you don’t mind, maybe sometimes...I could take him for a little while. I mean obviously not around the time of the full moon, but maybe a week afterwards? If it’s alright with you of course."

His first reaction was to say no and to be honest that wasn’t something he was proud of. The fact that he wanted to hurt the other man. However, when he thought about it, it wasn’t such a bad idea. Wouldn’t it be good for Harry to have someone else who cares about him around? And wouldn’t someone like Remus be better with kids then he was? "Sure, we’ll work something out."

This earned him a brilliant smile as Remus went into the kitchen. He stopped and stared at the little boy, clearly thinking about his deceased friend and how much the child resembled him. "Harry, cub, it’s so good to see you!"

"Remus!" Squealed Harry, jumping up from his seat and knocking over a glass of orange juice in the process. A feeling of confusion overcame Severus at the recognition of the man by the little boy.

The wold gave him a sheepish smile and muttered, "Well, I found times to see him when his relatives weren’t around."

"How Slytherin of you," commented Severus, unsure of whether he meant that as a compliment or an insult. He stepped over to the spilled juice and spelled away the liquid and picked up the glass.

"Daddy, do you know Remus?" Severus dropped the glass to the floor and stood there opening and closing his mouth, looking rather like a fish. Remus gaped at him momentarily and then snorted rather loudly. This drew a death glare from the dark-haired man and Remus held up his hands helplessly and started to laugh even louder, giving himself almost completely over to it.

"Shut up, Lupin."

"I just...." a great gasping laugh, "you should see your face!"

Oblivious Harry asked, "Can I show Remus my room?"

"Fine, why don’t you go and he’ll meet you there."

"K. Thanks Dad."

Whirling on Lupin he snapped, "I’m glad you find my problem so funny!"

"You don’t have a problem!"

"What do you mean I don’t have a problem," he lost all dignity at this point and gestured wildly, "Did you see that? Potter is rolling over in his grave right now!"

"Look," he sighed heavily and seated himself in his chair, "you have never had a real family and neither has Harry. Dumbledore had a reason for putting you two together, everything he does has a purpose. Besides, it’s sweet."

Severus gave him a doubtful look and Remus defended himself, "It is!"

"And it doesn’t bother you that he’d becoming...attached to me?"

Remus shrugged, "No. James was my best friend in the world Severus. And because of that I know that he’d want his son to be happy and have someone good in his life." The werewolf looked intently at him and then smiled, "You care about him."

"What?"

"Severus, you can’t fool me. Canines have an enhanced feel for human emotions and wolves are no exception." Stupid wolf with his stupid wolf senses. "I’m going to go look at Harry’s room, owl me and let me know about when I can take him. Oh, and Severus? Just trust yourself, trust that you’re a good person."

The potions master snorted, "Even from you I didn’t expect that sentimental sap."

Remus shook his head, "Whatever you say Severus."

XxXxXxX

Eventually, he managed to get the boy to eat breakfast and he washed him up. Remus watched this whole process with an annoying, knowing smile on his face. It bothered Severus that the wolf though that he cared for the boy, which he didn’t! He was simply completing another mission for Dumbledore, right? Right, the boy was simply latching onto him because he was the only constant, stable adult in his life right now.

"Can Remus come with us?" Questioned the little boy quietly, still not confident in asking things from his guardian. The werewolf glanced at him questioningly and Severus shrugged.

"I’d love to go, Harry."

Severus had always hated Diagon Alley ever since the first time his mother had taken him to the place to buy his school supplies. It was loud and crowded and there were children running around unsupervised. Harry, however, was staring at the street that was bursting with color and sound in awe.

"Oh! We have to get an ice cream, they have the best triple chocolate sundaes in here!" Exclaimed a very excited Lupin. Severus sneered ever so slightly at the man’s childish antics which got him a sheepish grin. However, nothing could have ruined Remus’ good mood just then.

The day went by quickly, although Severus noted that Harry grew extremely shy around the strangers of the alley. Also, they couldn’t get the little boy to pick anything to buy so they simply picked the things that the child’s eyes lingered on. By the time they left the alley both adults were tired and Harry was falling asleep where he stood. Remus went to pick him up but he whined slightly and extended his arms toward Severus who obediently picked him up and carried him out of Diagon Alley. When they arrived he gently sat the boy in his bed and covered him with the new quilt, featuring a large, green dragon the had bought.

"Night, Daddy."Severus sighed helplessly and mumbled, "Good night, Harry."

Remus was lounging on the couch, looking extremely tired when Severus returned from Harry’s room. "I love being able to see him like this."

Not knowing what to say, the potions master merely nodded, "It’s good to see you like this too, Severus. I mean, happy. And don’t argue, I can tell that you’re a lot happier then you have been in a long time." The werewolf was so close that he could smell the fresh scent of soap on the man. Then, to his shock, he found a pair of warm, soft lips gently caressing his own. For a moment he panicked and went to pull away but...it felt so good, the contact was so welcome! Looking at the brown-haired man, he felt a surge of...something for him. Hesitantly, he responded, deepening the kiss.

And then he came to his senses, this was Remus Lupin. A werewolf. As a matter of fact, it was a werewolf who had tried to kill him many years ago. Quickly, he pulled away and stood up. "What was that?"

Remus blinked up at him and Severus felt a surge of rage even though his lips were still tingling from the kiss. "I just thought..."

"You thought wrong, wolf." Hissed Severus.

Remus looked saddened as he stood to leave. Before he exited he turned and said, "Severus...you’re hurting still, from everything you’ve lived through. Maybe one day you will allow yourself to be happy." He observed him for a moment and then his eyes widened, "That’s it, isn’t it? You’re still punishing yourself for what you’ve done." He shook his head, "You’ve already repented, Severus. You’ve sacrificed more for this war then anyone has any right to expect. Owl me with the days Harry can visit."

He watched him leave with an oddly heavy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

The next few weeks passed peacefully, Severus struggling to adjust to taking care of a small child. Already, Harry had begun to gain a little weight and Severus had taken to taking him to a nearby Muggle park to entertain the boy. Unfortunately, the boy was weak from spending so much time at his relatives in a confined space so he tired easily. Remus came to see the child twice in those few weeks and avoided talking to Severus more then absolutely necessary. Harry still insisted on calling him his father and every time he did, the man flinched but secretly enjoyed the new role as it gave him a new purpose. Maybe the wolf had been right about his desire for a family because he had really never had one of his own. Maybe Remus was right about a lot of things.

That night when they brought Harry home and dragged him off to bed. Severus stopped Remus and kissed him deeply in the small, cluttered living room., probing for entrance into the warm mouth which he was granted. When they broke apart, the werewolf was staring at him with wide eyes.

"I changed my mind Remus," Severus said softly, feeling awkward and worried about any number of scathing comments Remus could throw back at him. "I want to be happy."

Remus smiled and leaned in for another kiss, eyes warm and bright in the dark room.